Car-handling apparatus.



I PATENTED MAR. 1', 1904.

L. L. LOGAN.

GAR HANDLING APPARATUS.

APPLIOATIOR FILED MAY 1a. 1903. no MODEL. 2 sums-5112211.

'PATENTED MAR. 1, 1 904.

L. L. LOGAN. GAR HANDLING APPARATUS.

APPLIOATION FILED MAY 15, 1903.

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N0 MODEL.

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1715 NORRIS PETERS 00.. PNQIO'LIYHG WQSHINGION, l7 6 UNITED STATES LAVALETTE L. LOGAN, OF ROBERTSDALE, PENNSYLVANIA.

PATENT OFFI CAR-HANDLING APPARATUS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 753,719, dated March 1, 1904.

Application filed May 16,1903. Serial No. 157,278. (No niodel.)

To all whom it mag concern:

Be it known that I, 'LAVALETTE L. LOGAN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Rob ertsdale, in the county of Huntingdon and State of Pennsylvania, have invented new and useful Improvements in Car-Handling Apparatus, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a car-handling ap-' paratus, this title having been selected merely as a convenient one, for the reason that the invention has been found highly advantageous for the purpose set forth in said title. The invention, however, may be used with-equal facility in other fields.

The apparatus includes tracksupon which cars are adapted to travel andv automatic mechanism for causing a car. to be transferred from one track to another, the parts being so .organized in the present case that the contents of a car are discharged therefrom after it leaves one track and before it passes onto another.

In the adaptation of the apparatus illustrated in the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, said apparatus includes two tracks, a shiftable track-section normally in working relation with one of said tracks and movable into working relation with the other track, and automatic means for operating said shiftable track-section, the car being discharged while upon said shiftable tracksection. In order to secure simplicity, the tracks in question are mounted in superposed relation or at different levels, the shiftable track-section normally constituting, in effect, a continuation of theupper one, sothat a-car can pass from said upper track onto the shiftable track-section and after it is dumped can be transferred by-said shiftable track-section to the lower track.

I wish to state at this point that I do not limit myself to the exact disclosure made by the drawings above mentioned and the following description, for, as I considermyself a pioneer, material and divers changes may be made in the character and relation of the parts, as well as other features, within the scope of my claims succeeding said description.

Referring to the drawings, Figure 1 is a side elevation of an apparatus. involving my invention. Fig. 2 is a planview of said apparatus. V I

Like characters refer to like parts throughout the views.

The apparatus in the form thereof illustrated by the accompanying drawings involves in its construction tracks 5 and 6, which are represented as being in superposed relation or one-above the other. Of course when I speak of said tracks being superposed 'I mean that thisrelation is adopted near, their outer ends, for it is not essential what their relation be at a point remote. from that at which the cars are dumped. The upper track is preferably at a slight downward inclination in order to facilitate the gravitation of the filled cars onto a shiftable track-section,

as 7. The framework for carrying the tracks 5 and 6 and the shiftable track-section 7 is denoted in a general way by 8, and as it maybe of any suitable character a detailed .description of the same is deemed unnecessary except to remark that it is provided along its top with a deck orplatform 9, upon which attendants may walk to reach the cars. The shiftable track-section 7 is: illustrated as being oscillatory .in order that .itmay be tipped to secure the emptying of a car thereon. 1

The oscillatory track-section is. suitably fastened to a rock-shaft 10, carri ed by suitable bearings upon the framework 8'. Said oscillatory track-section 7 is normally in working relation with the upper track 5, it constituting virtually acontinuation of said upper track, as seen by full lines infFig. 1, ,The

track-section as a car enters the same, and

the means illustrated for this purpose will now be set forth.

Fastened to the outer ends of the side girders constituting-a part of the framework 8 is a beam or bracket 11, represented as being ction, and a plane une terminal rails of the which terminal rails section are adapted to ately so when said track-secrking relation with said upper o of said beam projects outwad beyond he free ends of said terminal rails an of said tracksection when the the position shown by full lines in Fig. 1. This beam or bracket 11 constitutes a suitable support for a latch 12, which engages under the inner free end of the shiftable track-section 7, so as to maintain the latter in its normal position or approximately in line with the upper track 7. This latch 12 is slidable inwardly, so as to be moved from under the inner free end of the shiftable track-section in order to release the inner free end of said track-section, whereby the left branch of said track-section, which, it will be seen, is of approximately lever form, may drop in order to bring its inner end into working relation with the entering end of the lower track 6, as shown by dotted lines in Fig. 1, so that an empty car from said track-section can pass therefrom and onto the said lower track. As the inner branch of the movable track-section moves downward the inner ends of the rails thereof pass through the notches or apertures inthe outer edge of the beam or bracket 11, which notches were uncovered by the latch as it was moved into its ineffective position.

This latch, as will hereinafter appear, is auto' matically operated.

It will be assumed that a car has been run onto the shiftable track-section 7 and that its contents have been discharged, which operation takes place at the outer end of said tracksection: After the car has been emptied the inner portion of said track-section is caused to automatically drop to bring the inner ends of the rails thereof into coincidence with the entering ends of the rails of the lower track 6, whereby the empty car can pass from the tracksection onto said lower track, it being understood, of course, that said track-section at this time is at an inclination, so that the empty car can freely pass onto the said lower track. The outer portion of the lower track is first at a descending inclination and then at an ascending inclination, so as to insure the travel of the empty cars onto the inner and slightly downwardlyinclined portion of said lower track.

The outer end of the track-section 7, or that branch thereof to the right of its center of motion, has a stop or bumper 13 for the cars, against which stop or bumper the forward wheels of said car are adapted to strike. This stop may be formed by curving the outer ends of the rails of said track-section upward. Said rails at the right of the center of motion are united upon their under sides by a plate 14,

to the upper side of which is suitably fastened a weight 15, which slightly overbalances the left branch of the track-section, and the purpose of which is to return said track-section to its normal position after the delivery of an empty car onto the lower track. The right branch of the track-section should be of such a length that when a filled car is upon said track-section the center of gravity of the filled ,car will be to the outside or right of the center of motion of said track-section, whereby the right branch of the latter will be lowered and the left one elevated, the parts being so proportioned generally that upon such motion the track-section will assume an angle of about thirty degrees to the horizontal, as indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 1, whereby the filled car upon the track-section will be automatically tilted, so that its contents can pass therefrom and onto a chute or runway 16, located with its entering end in proximity to the shaft 10. It will be understood that when the forward wheels of the filled car strike against the stop or bumper 13 the right branch of the track-section is lowered and that the left one is elevated in order to effect automatically the dumping of said car, as will hereinafter be more fully set forth.

A horizontally-disposed rock-shaft 17 is car ried bysuitable bearings upon the diagonallydisposed parallel struts 18, constituting part of the framework 8, which struts are united upon their upper sides by suitable ties in order to provide a rigid structure for upholding the inner branch of the track-section when the same is lowered, as previously indicated. The deck or platform 9 at its outer end of course is cut away to permit the free downward-tilting movement of the track-section. Parallel arms 19 depend from the rock-shaft 17 and are united near their lower ends by a weight 20, which normally rests against a suitable buffer on the framework 8. The arms 19 and connecting-weight 2O constitute a suitable lever for automatically operating the track-section 7 to bring the same into coincidence with the lower track 6, and the arms 19, constituting a part of the same, have outwardly-disposed angular portions connected by the cross-rod 19, which passes through longitudinal slotsin the links 21. The upper ends of these longitudinally slotted links are united witlrthe eyebolts 22, depending from the under side of the track-section 7 at the left of its axis. By this construction provision is made for a certain amount of lost motion between the lever and shiftable track-section. In other words, the connections between the shiftable tracksection and the actuating shifting-levertherefor involve a sliding or loose joint.

At the opposite ends of the rock-shaft 17 are alined crank-arms 23, havingpins working in longitudinal slots at the forward ends of the connecting-rods 24:. The rear ends of these left or inner branch of the track-section 7 auconnecting-rods 24 are pivoted to the lower ends of the crank-arms 25, depending from the rock-shaft 26. From the upper side of the rock-shaft 26 crank-arms 27 rise, said crankarmshaving elbow-shaped forwardly-extending branches 28, the purpose of which will hereinafter appear. At the junction of the bodies of the arms 27 with their branches 28 are pivoted the straps 29, the forward ends of which are suitably united to the sliding latch 12. The crank-arms 25 and 27 and shaft 26 constitute a rocker for transmitting the motion of the counter-weighted lever hereinbefore mentioned to the latch 12, and it will beun- 'derstood that the connections between said parts involve a sliding or slip joint in order, as in the other case hereinbefore mentioned, to provide for a certain amount of lost motion of one of the parts relative to another.

The purpose of the weight 20 is to lower the tomatically into registration with the lower track 6 after the contents of a car have been discharged therefrom and'all the wheels of said car placed upon said track-section, said weight being automatically elevated by virtue of its connection with the track-section when the" inner branch of the latter is raised by a loaded car, as hereinbefore indicated.

It will be assumed that a filled car has been run fromthe track 5 onto the track-section 7 and that said track-section has been tipped.

After the track-section has reached an angle of thirty degrees to the horizontal, as hereinbeforeindicated, the car will be further tipped automatically to such an angle that the contents thereof can freely gravitate onto the chute or runway 16. When said track-section is in its normal position, the lower walls of the longitudinal slots in the links 21 will be in contact with the cross-bar 19, .so that the instant that the left branch of ,said track-section is elevated a corresponding motion follows with respect to the weight 20 through the elevation of the arms 19. The weight will be carried toward the horizontal line, it being understood that the load upon the track-section at the right of the center of motion thereof overbalances said weight 20. The moment of the weight 20, however, when the latter is in its elevated position exceeds that at the right of saidcenter when the caris empty. As soon as the car is emptied, it is swung downward by an attendant, so as to bring its rear wheels onto the track-section, and when this condition is reached the weight 20 can lower, and

as it does so it pulls down on the links 21, and

hence on the left branch of the track-section 7 As the downward movement of the weight 20 is an accelerated one, it will serve to carry said left branch downward to bring the inner end thereof into correspondence with the outer end of the lower track 6, it being understood that the latch 12 has been thrown to its ineffective position during the initial upward movement of-the track-section 7 As just stated, the weight 20 during its descent has a rapid motion, so as to, impart, through the intermediate connections, a corresponding motion to the shiftable track section, whereby when said weight strikes its bumper (at which point the track-section will be in a horizontal position) said track-section will be carried by its momentum into registration with the lower track. This latch is operated fromthe weighted arms 19 mentioned. As the said weighted arms 19 are moved upward they serve, through the intermediate crank arms 23, to draw the connecting-rods forward, whereby through the agency of the straps 29,'operatively connected, as hereinbefore set forth, with said rods, the latch 12 is moved from underthe inner free end of the track-section. "As the latch upon the initial movement of the tracksection is thrown to its ineffective position the. left branch of said track-section may be lowered by' the falling weight 20 in order to permit the rolling of an empty car from said track-section onto the lower track. As soon asthe' empty car passes from the tracksection onto said lower track the weight 15,

turns to its initial position to effect the auto matic operation of the track-section will'not thrust the rods 24 rearward or to the left, .as in case it did the latch would be put into its effective position to block the complete return movement of the shiftable track-section 7 Means operative independent of said weight 20 are provided for returning the latch to its normal or effective position. When the weight 20 strikes its buffer, the pins at the free ends of the crank-arms 23 will be at or near the in ner ends of the slots insaid connecting-rods,

said pins traversing said slots during the falling of said weight. The free ends of the angular branches 28 as the rods v24: are drawn toward the right under the action of the as cending weighted arms 19 are elevated to a point above the top of the track 5 and in position to be engaged by the treads of the forward wheels of a filled car, it being understood that the said free ends are located back of the junction between the free end of the track 5 and the inner free end of the track-section 7. Of course the free ends of the branches 28 are maintained in this position until they are engaged by the treads of 'the forward wheels of a filled car. As soon as said treads strike said free ends the branches 28 will be lowered to their initial positions, whereby the crank-arms 25 are swung toward the left, the rods 24 moving into corresponding directions, so as to carry the outer ends of the slots in said rods against the pins at the free ends of the crank-arms 23. During the lowering of said branches 28 by the wheels the rods or straps 29 are thrust toward the right, so as-to carry the sliding latch 12 under the inner free end of the track-section 7, which latter in the interval had resumed its primary position. By virtue of the loose connection between the track section 7 and the links 21 the inner branch of said track-section can have a lowering movement without imparting a thrust to the weighted arms 19. During the ascending movement of said inner branch under the action of the weight 15 the links 21 will have an ascending movement relatively to the at this time stationary weighted arms 19, and when the track-section reaches its normal position the lower walls of the slots of said links will strike the cross-bar 19 in order to positively arrest said track-section when it reaches said normal position, it being understood that theweight 15 underbalances the weight 20.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secureby Letters Patent, is-

1. An apparatus of the class described including superposed tracks, a track-section shiftable into working relation with the respective tracks, and automatically-operative mechanism for causing the operation of said shiftable track-section.

2. An apparatus of the class described including superposed tracks, and an oscillatory track-section shiftable into working relation with the respective tracks.

3. An apparatus of the class described in cluding superposed tracks, and a track-sec tion supported for oscillation between its ends and movable into working relation with the respective tracks.

4. An apparatus of the class described including superposed tracks, a track-section supported for oscillation between its ends, adapted normally to occupy a position in working relation with the upper track and shiftable into working relation with the lower track, and a latch for holding said track-section in its normal position.

5. An apparatus of the class described including superposed tracks, a track-section supported for oscillation between its ends, adapted normally to occupy a position in working relation with the upper track and shiftable into working relation with the lower track, a latch for holding said track-section in its normal position, and mechanism operative with the said track-section for moving the latch into its ineflective position.

6. An apparatus of the class described including superposed tracks, a track-section supported for oscillation between its ends, adapted normally to occupy a position in working relation with the upper track and shiftable into working relation with the lower track, a latch for holding said track-section in its normal position, mechanism. operative with the said track-section for moving the latch into its ineffective position, and independent means for moving the latch into its operative position.

a 7. An apparatus of the class described including superposed tracks, a track-section supported for oscillation between its ends, adapted normally to occupy a position in working relation with the upper track and shiftable into working relation with the lower track, a latch for holding said track-section in its normal position, mechanism operative with the said track-section for moving the latch into its inefi ective position, and car-operated means for moving said latch into its eflective position.

8. An apparatus of the class described including superposed tracks, a track-section normally in working relation with the upper track, supported for oscillation between its ends and its inner branch being longer than its outer one, a latch for holding the tracksection in its normal position, and automatic mechanism for throwing the said latch into its ineffective position and for subsequently moving the track-section into working relation with the lower track.

9. An apparatus of the class described including superposed tracks, a track-section normally in working relation with the upper track, supported for oscillation between its ends, its inner branch being longer than its outer one and the latter having a car-stop, a latch for holding the track-section in its normal position, and automatic mechanism for releasing said latch and subsequently moving the said track-section into working relation with the lower track.

10. An apparatus of the class described including superposed tracks, a track-section normally in working relation with the upper track, supported for oscillation between its ends and its inner branch being longer than its outer one, means for holding the track-section in its normal position, mechanism for moving the track-section into working relation with the lower track, and independent means for subsequently returning said tracksection to its normal position.

11. An apparatus of the class described including superposed tracks, a track-section normally in working relation with the upper track, and automatically-operative mechanism for moving the track-section out of its normal position and into working relation with the lower track and for subsequently returning said track-section to its normal position.

12. An apparatus of the class described including superposed tracks, atrack-section normally in working relation with the upper track, supported for oscillation between its ends and its inner branch being longer than its outer one, the latter having "a stop for a car whereby when the car strikes said stop, said inner branch can be elevated by the weight in the car, automatically-operative mechan= ism thrown into action by the elevation of said inner branch for lowering the latter into 00- incidence with the lower track, and means for returning said track-section to its initial position.

13. An apparatus of the class described including superposed tracks, a track-section normally in working relation with the upper track and shiftable into working relation with the lower one, a latch for holding the tracksection normally in its working position, and

automatic mechanism for operating the latch to effect the release of the shiftable tracksection.

14:. An apparatus of the class described including s uperposed tracks, a track-section normally in working relation with the upper track, supported for oscillation between its ends and its inner branch being longer than its outer one, and an operating device for moving the shiftable track-section into working relation with the lower track, connected to said track-section by means involving a loose joint.

15. An apparatus of the class described including superposed tracks, a track-section normally in working relation with the upper track, supported for oscillation between its ends, a weighted lever constituting a device for shifting the track-section into working relation with the lower track, and a longitudinally-slotted link connecting the track-section and weighted lever.

16. An apparatus of the class described includ ing superposed tracks, a track-section normally in working relation with the upper track supported for oscillation between its ends and its inner branch being longer than its outer one, a weighted lever operatively connected with the said longer branch by means involving a loose joint, and a latch for holding the track-section in its normal position, operatively connected with said weighted lever, said lever serving to throw the latch into its ineffective position.

17. An apparatus of the class described including superposed tracks, a track-section nor.

mally in working relation with the upper track, supported for oscillation between its ends and its inner branch being longer than its outer one, a weighted lever operatively connected with the said longer branch by means involving a loose joint, and a latch for holding the track-section in its normal position operatively connected with said weighted lever, said lever serving to throw the latch into its inefiective position, and means in position to be operated by a car upon the upper track for moving the latch into its effective position.

18. An apparatus of the class described in.- cluding superposed tracks, a track-section normally in working relation with the upper track, supported for oscillation between its ends and its inner branch being longer than its outer one, a latch for holding the track section in its normal position, a weighted lever, a longitudinally-slotted link connected with the longer branch of the track-section and also with the weighted lever, a rocker operatively connected with the latch, and. a longitudinally-slotted rod also connected with the rocker and operatively connected with said lever.

19. An apparatus of the class described including superposed tracks, the lower one of which has first a downward and then an upward inclination, and an oscillatory track-section shiftable into working relation with the respective tracks.

20. An apparatus of the class described including superposed tracks, a track-section normally in working relation with the upper track, supported for oscillation between its ends and its inner branch being longer than its outer one, and independent means acting against the branches for moving said tracksection in opposite directions.

21; An apparatus of the class described including superposed tracks, atrack-section normally in working relation with the upper track, supported for oscillation between its ends and its inner branch being longer than its outer one, a weight carried by the outer branch, and a counterweighted lever connected with the inner branch by means including a loose joint. g

22. An apparatus of the class described including superposed tracks, a track-section normally in working relation with theupper track, supported for oscillation between its ends, and its inner branch being longer than its outer one, a bracket supported below the free end of the upper track, having notches for the passage of the rails at the inner end of said track-section, and a latch supported by said bracket and adapted to normally engage under the innerfree end of said tracksection.

23. An apparatus of the class described including superposed tracks, a track-section normally in working relation with the upper track, supported for oscillation between its ends and its inner branch being longer than the track-section, and a connection between I the upper branch of said rocker and the latch.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in presence of tWo subscribing Witnesses.

.LAVALETTE L. LOGAN.

Witnesses:

W. S. DE VoRE, MICHAEL DEMPSEY. 

